Cuthbert & the Nightwalkers,Hungry Kids of Hungary, LittleScout @ The Troubadour(23/10/2008)

Sat 25th Oct, 2008 in Gig Reviews

Little Scout are getting lots of attention in Brisbane right now, and it’s easy to see why. Despite having a 50% absentee rate tonight, vocalist, Melissa Tickle and guitarist/vocalist, Patrick Elliott, provided a 30 minute acoustic moment that melted in the ears, dripping honey-laden sweetness deep into the early punters’ psyche. Sucked in to the people who turned up after their set, because you missed out. Perhaps a little less awkward onstage banter, and certainly no more jokes please, Melissa, would be nice. But for your beautiful music, I forgive you this small transgression.

Hungry Kids of Hungary seem to be getting all the supports in Brisbane at the moment, and that’s a good thing, because their brand of eccentric pop seems to get better and better with each show. Drawing on a broad range of influences including a hefty drawing from the blues, soul and rock classics of the later – œ60s, the kids provided an eclectic and soulful set of sonic surprises. You could still make comparisons to acts such as The Cold War Kids and The Shins, and while these comparisons would certainly be no crime, Hungry Kids of Hungary seem to stake their claim in a musical spot that is quite refreshing in its difficulty to pin down to an obvious, clichéd derivation of something else.

Cuthbert & the Nightwalkers vocalist, Richie Cuthbert, introduced the band’s set by explaining that it would be a five-part experience: the slow stuff; the classics; the new stuff; some more slow stuff; and finally, the grand finale. And sure enough, with polite signposts along the way, that’s exactly what they did. Even with their keyboardist absent with the flu, the Nightwalkers still managed to squeeze six people onto the diminutive stage, along with drums, percussion, bass, guitar, an assortment of xylophones and melodicas, and even a whistle probably pinched from some hapless high school coach.

And you know what? Cuthbert & the Nightwalkers are good. Really good. There are elements of The Flaming Lips that peek through during their set, along with hat-tipping to the Canadians, including The Dears and The Arcade Fire. There isn’t a moment of boredom in their entire set, with constant changes in dynamic, harmony and instrumentation. Listening to Cuthbert & the Nightwalkers play is like rollicking through the open meadows upon yon mountain high, humming sweet gypsy love songs to the bees in the lavender while the larks swoon o’erhead (and yes, that’s a deliberate ye-olde-word, not a typo).

While Cuthbert chatted amiably to both crowd and musical compatriots, his banter was short and relaxed enough to add to the general sensation of warmth inspired by their musical musings. Little Scout, take note. The only complaint I can muster up is that there was no encore. Perhaps this was due to the fairly weak cheers from the thin-on-the-ground crowd, or maybe Cuthbert & The Nightwalkers don’t buy into the whole used and abused encore game. But I couldn’t help leaving the venue feeling slightly let down that they didn’t play just one more. So until their next visit to sunny Queensland, I’ll just have to console myself with listening to their quixotic LP, Love Needs Us.